Our right to personal liberty dates back to Magna Carta in 1215, if not before: “No free man shall be seized or imprisoned…except by the lawful judgement of his equals or by the law of the land.” This fundamental idea, which was further developed and enshrined in the Habeas Corpus Act in 1679, is at the heart of our understanding of what it means to be free and to live in a democracy. It is part of our birthright and something we are proud of and rightly hold very dear in this country.
